Hospitals
by WindowChild
Summary: Trips to the hospital, as seen through Darry's perspective over the years.
1. Chapter 1

"What's happening? What's happening, Dar-ry?" Soda asked, tugging his brother's shirtsleeve. At two years old, he managed to elongate every syllable he spoke.

"Mommy's having a baby," Darry whispered, pulling Soda close. He did not like the way the walls of the hallway were all so identical; what if they got lost?

"What?" Soda asked, his tone lacking the reverence that one might expect from a hospital waiting room. Darry tightened his grip on Soda, glaring at the nurses who dared to look at them with contempt; Soda was only a little kid! Still, he caught sight of their dirty, secondhand clothing and felt ashamed.

"What?" Soda repeated. His lower lip was trembling impatiently, and he started to pull at Darry's hair now.

"Let go," Darry insisted quickly, and Soda gave a little yell. One of the doctors slammed his clipboard against a counter.

"How old are you son?" he asked, peering over wide-framed glasses.

Darry started, staring up and patting Soda's arm to quiet him. "Six," he replied softly, shrinking against the wall.

"Six years old?" the man asked, doubtful. "What are you doing here alone?"

"Mommy's having a baby," Soda said, proud at echoing his brother's words so exactly.

"Oh." The doctor cleared his throat with gruff disapproval, and tensed. "Well, make sure not to make too much of a disturbance."

"We will," Darry repeated. He could only imagine what they were thinking, watching such dirty kids in a clean place like this. He wished they'd remembered to bath this morning.

He did all he could to distract Soda then, making sure his voice stayed quiet. It wasn't like he was so old himself, but he was responsible. Mature for his age. Adults often said that he possessed the natural quality of leadership.

An hour passed, and soon an hour and a half. Soda didn't understand what was going on – he was merely fidgety with boredom – but Darry understood perfectly well. He kept his eyes focused on the swinging doors, waiting for someone to bring them news. They would have a baby brother or sister soon.

His glance flickered over to Soda, and he wondered how things would be different now. He quite liked having a brother, a mother, and a father; he didn't want anyone else, really. But this would be hard enough on Soda, who didn't even know what was coming, and so Darry had to stay calm. Stay calm. Be the big brother. That's what his dad had told him on his fifth birthday. He'd said that Darry was old enough to start taking more responsibility, and act like a big brother to Sodapop. So that's what he'd done. After all, Darry wanted to be just like his father. Darry was named after him, you know.

"Hungry," Soda said suddenly, his thumb finger traveling between his lips. He sucked on it thoughtfully, looking up at his brother with inquisitive eyes. "Hungry," he repeated, drooling all over his collar.

"Mommy will be back soon," Darry said, hoping that it was true. He was beginning to feel restless. Still, over an hour passed before anyone came to find them. Soda was bouncing all across the hallway at this point, and several hospital attendants told them to quiet down.

"It's a boy!" Darryl Senior said, bursting into the waiting room. He was grinning madly, his arms going out to catch his little boys.

"What's his name?" Darry piped.

"Oh, we don't know yet." Darryl's expression grew dreamy. "Something with horses, I think." He paused, folding his hands. "Do you remember the story of how your mother and I met?"

"You went riding!" Soda said, jumbling the words in his toddler-speak.

"You're going to name him something with horses?" Darry asked, a funny feeling wrapping around his stomach. It was bad enough having a brother named Sodapop; he didn't want to think about having a brother named 'Saddle'.

"I think so," Darryl confirmed, straightening out his back. "Now boys, how are you?"

"Can we see Mommy?" Darry asked, by way of an answer.

"Not right away," his father replied at once, shaking his head with vehemence. "You won't be able to see her for a few days, I'm afraid."

"Or the baby…?" Darry asked, feeling foolishly relieved. He wasn't prepared to meet the new member of the family just yet.

"That's right," Darryl amended. "Now I need you both to be big boys, alright? Having a baby takes a lot of work. Do you remember when Soda was born, Darry?"

"Yeah," Darry replied quietly. That was before his grandmother had died, and he'd gone to stay there. He distinctly remembered not liking Sodapop at all.

"Well, a baby's a lot of work," Darryl reiterated. "You'll both need to be brave little soldiers, alright?"

"Alright Daddy!" Soda said, not understanding a word of it. He jumped up and down, his endless energy wafting out his ears.

Darry backed slowly away from his father, nearly tripping over the bench. He had this strange feeling, tugging at the lining of his stomach. "I want to see Mommy," he said softly, his voice wobbling. "I wanna see her."

"You can't just yet," Darryl insisted. His eyes turned a shade of cool impatience, rather than their ordinary compassion. "Darry…" he sighed. "Darry, I'm afraid you have to understand me…" He hesitated, trying to figure how best to say it. "Darry, your mother and I are going to be very busy," he said gently. "We might not have so much time for you and Soda, for a little while."

Darry turned on his father, eyes ripe with betrayal. What about his birthday, and Christmas? Would their parents be too busy for them then? The thought brought furious tears to his eyes, and he felt his nose stuff up as he began to cry. "No, no," he wailed. "I wanna see Mommy now!" All maturity was lost, and he dissolved into the six-year-old that he deserved to be.

Darryl strode carefully over to his son, his golden heart overridden by a flaring temper. He struck Darry quickly on the behind. It wasn't hard, it was barely even a spank, but Darry's tears dried up in shock. Soda stared up at the pair of them, wide-eyed, and put his thumb back into his mouth.

"Please," Darryl whispered, speaking to both of his sons. "I need you to be grown up for a little bit, okay?" He ran a hand through his graying hair, shaking his head. "Please?"

Darry nodded, hugging himself around the middle. "Yes Daddy," he said meekly. Now Darryl looked ashamed of himself.

"I'll bring you home in a few hours, okay? Try to get some sleep." He shrugged off his ratty jacket, laying it on the bench like a blanket. "I'll see you soon," he repeated, retreating back behind the swinging doors.

Darry sat down, wiping his nose with his finger.

"What's wrong?" Soda asked, looking scared. He hated it when Darry got upset.

"Nothing," Darry replied, sobbing just a little. "You wouldn't understand."

Soda began to pout. "I would!" he exclaimed, glaring at his brother.

"No you wouldn't!" Darry retorted, breaking his own rule by shouting at Sodapop.

"Shh!" a nurse said, looking over at them. "If you can't keep it down, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Darry didn't bother to apologize. He drew his knees up to his chest, feeling altogether miserable.

"Darry," Soda said. His pout was gone, and he seemed as sympathetic as any two-year-old could. "Darry." He climbed halfheartedly onto Darry's lap, and Darry hugged him tightly.

"I hate it here," he said bitterly, shaking his head. He was talking mostly to himself, but Soda began to stroke his hair the way their mother did to them sometimes. "I hate the stupid hospital," Darry said. He and Soda clung together, Soda crying with him even though he didn't understand.

Darry wished their parents would come back. More than anything, he just wanted attention from them. He didn't like the way they were losing their happy family.

"Darry, Darry," Soda said, pulling at him. Darry smiled a little, recognizing his brother's desired to keep everyone happy. "Darry," Soda repeated, "I hate the hospital too."

A/N: Hey, thanks for reading! I hope you liked it! Whether you did or didn't, can you please leave me a review? Thanks! At the moment, I think this story is going to have four chapters.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Ugh, I am so sorry for the long wait between chapters. Thank you so much for the reviews last chapter!

"You okay, little buddy?" Darry leaned anxiously over Soda's cot, his brow furrowed. Mrs. Curtis came forward, hands reaching to touch both her boys.

"I'm alright," Soda replied, his grimace wavering to be replaced by something sunnier. He was probably the only ten-year-old in the world who could smile through a break in both his arm and leg.

"Oh, sweetheart, what were you thinking?" Letting go of Darry, Mrs. Curtis knelt in front of her middle son. "Climbing the tree... you know that tree is dangerous!"

Now Soda was positively beaming, his scraped chin boldly jutting forward. "Well Steve dared me to! You don't say no to a dare, mom. Right Darry?" Darry hesitated, not wanting to upset their mother. Eventually he shrugged, pacifying them both.

"Your father should be here soon with Pony," she said, smoothing Soda's unruly hair. "I think he might be bringing some of your friends as well." She sniffed. She loved Steve and Two-Bit as if they were her own children, she always said. She told her sons she would do anything for Johnny. It was only when they put one of her biological sons in danger that she started worrying.

"Mom?" Darry asked, watching her glide pensively towards the door. His icy blue eyes were cracked with worry. Soda said he wasn't in pain, but of course he'd say something like that. Darry didn't quite believe the mild expression on his face.

Mrs. Curtis's head snapped up, eyes shiny. "I think I need to talk to you boys. You're growing up now... Darry you're practically a man already, and sometimes I forget that I need to warn you about certain things." She sighed. "When you get older, little dares won't be the only thing you're faced with. There's alcohol and drugs. There's fighting." A shudder coursed through her face, rippling its perfect symmetry. "The boys you hang out with... well of course I love them, you know that. I just want you to be careful, okay?" She looked expectantly towards them, her face twisted in the pain of a mother knowing she would have to let her children go.

Soda nodded, oblivious in his elementary school world. It was different for Darry. He went to junior high; he knew how it worked. Guys had never approached him personally for fights, mostly cause he was so big, but he'd seen it happen. Sometimes even with guys who he considered okay friends. He'd had a drink or two before as well, but of course he wouldn't tell his mother that. "Sure, mom," Soda said, grinning. The expression looked so out of place against the white bandages around his arm and leg, it was nearly comical.

Darry nodded as well, uncomfortable. "Yeah," he said quietly, his voice throaty.

"Good," Mrs. Curtis replied. "Now let me see if I can talk to that doctor about when they'll release you." She gave a fleeting look of separation anxiety, and then hurried out into the hallway.

"You really okay?" Darry asked. "You don' t look it."

Soda's smile half-faded, but there was still a glimmer of humor in his eye. "I'm - " he grimaced in pain, a gasp whistling through his lips. "... okay."

"Aw Soda," Darry said, shaking his head. "Why'd you climb that tree? You knew you couldn't."

"Yeah, but Steve could," Soda replied.

"Come on, Soda!' Darry said, his temper igniting with a hiss. "You can't make everything a competition, it'll get you into trouble!"

Now Soda was no longer smiling at all, and he looked hurt. "Darry, why're you laying it on me like this? You're not my dad..."

Darry panted for a moment, trying to control his anger. Soda was the last person in the world he wanted to inflict it on. There was just something about his optimism that made Darry want to protect him, keep him happy. In his mind, the world needed at least one person like his brother. "Soda," he said. "Mom's right about what she said. When you get older, next year even, you're gonna start having to watch out for those guys." He breathed through his nose, slow and careful. "Not guys like Two-Bit and Steve, cause they're not so bad by comparison, but other guys. Ones who'll want you to drink and fight and get you in trouble. You have to watch out for them... you can't let them challenge you to stupid stuff!"

The desperate expression on Darry's face did not go unnoticed, and Soda recoiled in a mouthful of shame. "I'm sorry Darry," he whispered, slinking further under the covers. "Really. I won't do it again, I promise."

Darry met his brother's eyes and decided that he was telling the truth. He smiled a little, feeling a little reassured. "Okay." He opened his mouth to continue, to say that he wasn't really mad and Soda didn't have to look so worried, but then they were interuppted.

"How are you, son?" Darryl Senior said, going immediately to clap the shoulder on the uninjured side of Soda's body. "They give you enough bandages?" He put on a good show, but Darry could read the blind panic beneath his joking smile. Pony put on no such act, and ran forward with a red face.

"Soda! Soda!" He burst into tremendous tears, tugging at Soda's hand until it curled around his own. "Your arm is funny looking."

Soda laughed again, bright and bubbling. "Yeah kiddo, it's broken. Don't do what I did, okay?" Darry felt a surge of pride for both of them as Pony nodded solemnly, a picture of obedience.

"You think you're up for more visitors?" Mr. Curtis asked. "We have a bit of a party waiting in the hall."

"Sure!" Soda exclaimed, peering excitedly past the sliver of light in the doorway.

"Alright, come on in kids!" Steve, Two-Bit and Johnny rushed into the room, with only Two-Bit looking unconcerned.

"I'm sorry Soda," Steve muttered, gravitating immediately to the bed. Darry decided he had never seen the boy's tough face look ashamed like it did now. Johnny's small frame shuffled to Pony's side, his wide eyes welled with even deeper fear than usual. Two-Bit made a good-natured joke about the tree, but Darry didn't miss the hint of worry in his face as well. Darry felt his heart beat slow, warmed by the people around him. Sure enough, Soda was the center of their world. Everyone cared about him. Watching his friends and his brothers, laughing and joking together, Darry decided he wouldn't worry yet. After all, they were only kids. What was there to worry about?

A/N: That's all for now! :D Reviews would be much appreciated.


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